In the Aftermath
by RenaissanceGrrl
Summary: The D-Reaper had destroyed the city, but all the people are safe now and the threat is gone. For Takato, it's time to move on to matters of the heart.


DISCLAIMER: I do not own Digimon or any of its characters. I just like to torture them. Please don't sue.  
  
Authoress's Notes: *sigh* When 03 started, I watched for any hints of couples and Takajuri was what I saw (and Jenruki, or possibly Rukato, Ryoruki, or several other ones that weren't necessarily hinted at but could be made into good fanfiction)... So I was thrilled when Takato admitted to Juri on the train that he liked her as more than just a friend. This happiness was not abated when we found out that Juri wasn't Juri, because I figured if he got up the guts to tell her once, he could do it again. Up until I watched the finale, I was *sure* he'd tell her as soon as they rescued her.  
  
But NOOOOO! (Looking at someone while saying "the ones we care about most" doesn't count in my book.) He had to be a stupid moron (yes, there are smart morons out there) and NOT TELL HER!!! *authoress bangs her head on desk repeatedly* stupid...stupid...stupid...  
  
Anywho, this fic...it's not necessarily how "Such Sweet Sorrow" *should* have gone, so much as it is my way of filling in the gaps. I could have gone into making as many couples as humanly possible, but I didn't want to. Other couples might have stemmed from crisis (most likely did), true, but this was meant to be Takato and Juri's story from the first.  
  
And, yes, of course I messed with the ages! Everyone's thirteen-ish. Not too far off from ten/eleven-ish, right? Right?...  
  
A time of celebration had been set in motion worldwide by the acts of four children. Takato, Ruki, Jenrya and Ryo--along with their digimon--had saved the world.  
  
Takato could hardly believe it. ~We did it...we're all safe...~ He sighed a breath of relief. His thoughts ran wild through his head, barely controllable. He knew that he should be grateful for the people all over the world, and his own family--immediate and extended, (and he was, somewhere in the back of his mind,) but he couldn't think of anything but...  
  
Her.  
  
Juri Katou, his first love (or so his cousin Kai had called her). He wasn't really sure when he had first noticed, but he knew that it had been long before they returned from the DigiWorld. He'd already tried to tell her once, but found out later that she'd been replaced by a double, a negative force--a computer program gone horribly wrong--that could be considered her evil twin.  
  
Right now she was being fussed over by her father, stepmother, and half-brother. Takato thought he heard her apologizing to Mrs. Katou about not accepting her, or something like that. She was busy. He'd tell her, though, as soon as he got a chance.  
  
His own parents came running up. His mother threw a blanket over his shoulders. He laughed a little. "Mom! Please! I'm all sweaty--the last thing I need is a blanket!" he cried, giving it back to her. "But I'm hungry. Desperately hungry. Please, feed me!" He clutched at his stomach, exaggerating his point.  
  
"You just saved the world and all you can think about is *food*?" Mrs. Masuda asked.  
  
"No problem! I brought bread," her husband assured their son.  
  
Takato laughed to discover that his father had brought Guilmon Bread for everyone, with peanut butter filling to boot.  
  
The others ran over for their share, but no one really spoke. There was too much destruction nearby for a noisy celebration.  
  
A few hours later, the group--meaning just about everyone with a digimon--had gathered in the park. The digimon were all resting nearby--and no one could blame them after the day they'd been through.  
  
Takato tugged on Juri's sleeve. "Can we talk?" he asked.  
  
Juri blinked. "You mean, privately?"  
  
He nodded.  
  
She smiled at him, and took his hand. He led her off to a nearby tree. He started to climb.  
  
"Hey!" she cried, playfully, "I can't climb!"  
  
"Sure you can," he said. "Just take my hand." He offered it to her and gave her a pull from above. A few minutes later, with his help, they were sitting next to each other on a thick branch about ten or fifteen feet up.  
  
"What did you want to talk about?" she asked him.  
  
A blush spread over his cheeks, but he took a deep breath and tried to collect his thoughts. "I tried to tell you once before, Juri...But it wasn't really you. It was The D-Reaper's evil twin of you..."  
  
"Tell me what?" she asked, slowly and blushingly.  
  
"I took her to your parents on the train. Everyone thought it was you, just kind of zoned out because of Leomon. And while we were on the train, we had the whole car to ourselves, and Guilmon and Calumon were asleep...Juri...a while back...when 'Kazu and Kenta were mad at me because they thought I was lying about Guilmon, and you were the only one that would talk to me...I...I wondered if maybe you...kind of liked me. And I started thinking about it all the time...and...what I want to say is...more than just a friend...I...I like you, Juri."  
  
The shines in her eyes were quivering and she placed both her hands over her heart. "Really?"  
  
He nodded, blushing. ~I knew I should have kept my mouth shut...she's about to cry...~  
  
"Takato...when I was trapped inside the D-Reaper...I...I knew that the only person who could help me help myself...was you."  
  
"Huh?"  
  
She dropped her eyes to the ground. "When Calumon hit me over the head with the truth and I decided that I wanted out of there, I kept calling for you because I knew you'd come for me when I needed you."  
  
Takato blinked. "I...I think I heard you...several times..."  
  
She looked up at him. "I *know* you did. You saved me..."  
  
"I had to, Juri. I could never bear to lose you...you mean more to me than any of my other friends. I really, really like you. And I know we're only thirteen and all...but...I was wondering..."  
  
He placed his hand over hers and watched the blush creep into her cheeks. Her mouth opened, just a little, in surprise.  
  
"Would you like to be my girlfriend, Juri?"  
  
She looked away from him, looking at all the destruction around them. Buildings reduced to piles of rubble in every direction, nearly as far as the eye could see. The park seemed to be in the eye of the storm, untouched. It was like the D-Reaper could sense the children's lingering presence, like the park reeked of their scent.  
  
Juri shook her head. "It seems strange...that in the middle of all this...that after I lost Leomon...I can still be...so...incredibly happy to hear you say that!" She did start crying, loudly, and threw her arms around him. "I never knew you liked me as much as I've always liked you!"  
  
Takato was turning beet red from her sudden touch, but he hugged her and patted her back, trying to comfort her, if comfort was the right word.  
  
"Takato! Juri! Get over here!" Rika yelled.  
  
They'd lost their digimon. They'd all had to go back to the Digital World.  
  
"Now I kind of know how you must have felt," Takato told Juri.  
  
"Don't worry...you'll see him again someday..." Juri said, quietly. "I won't see Leomon again for a long, long time."  
  
Takato assumed that she meant when she got old and died, years and years away. He didn't pry, despite her oddly calm tone.  
  
They were heading for home, hand-in-hand amidst the debris. The other kids had already headed off, sensing that the two brought together by the crisis needed some time alone.  
  
Thankfully, the part of town where the D-Reaper had attacked was a mostly business district. Very few people had lost their homes. Now that the threat was eradicated, the economy might actually start to boom as the businesses once there would have to relocate in long-abandoned buildings and new ones were constructed. Other locales worldwide had not necessarily gotten off so well.  
  
Best of all, the neighborhood where all the kids lived--save Rika--was untouched. Things could go back to business as usual. Rika's neighborhood had been on the brink of disaster, but they'd saved it in time, and she'd be back in her old house, too.  
  
"Takato...?"  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"Do you think anyone blames me for this?"  
  
"Of course not, Juri. And if they do, I'll help you set them straight."  
  
She smiled.  
  
"Juri, stop for a minute."  
  
She did, and he turned to face her, but didn't let go of her hand. "I said I liked you...and I do...and I asked you to be my girlfriend...and you didn't exactly say, but I think you meant yes..."  
  
She gasped. "I didn't, did I? But I did mean it, though. I would love to be your girlfriend, Takato!..."  
  
"I'm glad." He curled his fingers tighter around hers. He smiled, closing his eyes for a few seconds. Then they snapped open. "But anyway, what I was going to say...is that I...I love you, Juri." He gathered every whit of courage within him and kissed her.  
  
Again, the feeling of being the eye of the storm seemed to permeate the area. That two young teens could be so happy among the debris of a disaster that could be construed as their fault was nearly incomprehensible. (Of course, it could also be blamed on the Monster Makers, or the digimon. It was one of those things that no one could have forseen--so no one could be blamed fairly and found guilty with every little thing falling squarely on any one person's shoulders.)  
  
Juri was blushing, but she was also enjoying the kiss. She didn't want to come up for air, but eventually, they had to break it. She cuddled her cheek against his shoulder, forehead against his neck. A gentle breeze threatened to carry away her words so that Takato never heard them, but he could always hear her with his heart when her speech was too soft to be audible.  
  
"I love you, too, Takato..."  
  
A/N: Ah, young love...heh...I like this story...I like the idea that Takato and Juri have some kind of connection above the physical level. (I'm not sure I'd call it spiritual and I certainly wouldn't term it psychic...Eh, whatever.) That they can know when the other is in danger, or is sad, or angry or happy or any other number of things. I don't believe in destiny, though; at any rate, not like most people--I believe that two people can *belong* together but just because that's the case doesn't mean they actually end up together--they cold get in a fight and start going with other people out of spite or one could be the victim of a car wreck or a bazillion other possibilities...at any rate, you've read, so review. That's an order! ^_^** 


End file.
